Cleveland – March 26, 2009 – OnSpeX, a division of CSA Group and a global provider of consumer product performance evaluation, inspection, auditing and advisory services for retailers and manufacturers, today officially announces that its laboratory in Shanghai, China, has received accreditation by China National Accreditation Service (CNAS) to the highly regarded ISO 17025 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories standard.
“This accreditation is a significant achievement for our staff in Shanghai and it represents a crucial stage in advancing the growth of OnSpeX initiatives in China” says Sue Dempsey, Vice President & General Manager, OnSpeX. “This accreditation will also serve to highlight OnSpeX as a leading provider of service offerings for North American retailers sourcing products from manufacturers in China. Having a qualified laboratory so close to the manufacturers and factories can mean faster turn around times for manufacturers and lower costs for transportation. It can also shorten time to market for retailers and manufacturers for new and innovative products.”
ISO17025 is an international standard used by national accreditation bodies, such as CNAS, to assess the competencies and capability of testing laboratories. It provides a consistent framework for measuring an organization’s quality management system as well as competencies of staff, methodologies applied in testing, and calibration of test equipment. Certification of a testing laboratory to ISO17025 is a significant achievement and is often a major consideration when manufacturers and retailers are selecting a third party laboratory for the testing of their products.
The accreditation achieved by OnSpeX is focused on the testing of gas fired and plumbing products but provides the platform for expansion into additional product categories as needed by its customers.
About OnSpeX
OnSpeX is a provider of consumer product evaluation, inspections and advisory services for retailers and manufacturers. With locations in Cleveland, Toronto, Atlanta, Shanghai and Shenzhen, OnSpeX is a division of CSA Group, which also includes: Canadian Standards Association, a leading solutions-based standards organization, providing standards development, application products, training and advisory services; and CSA International, which provides testing and certification services for electrical, mechanical, plumbing, gas and a variety of other products. For more information, visit www.OnSpeX.com.
Contact: Anthony Toderian
Senior Media Relations Officer
CSA Group
T: 416-747-2620
E: anthony.toderian@csagroup.org
